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Paul Burrell was branded a liar today. The coroner in charge of the inquest into the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, named the former royal butler in a hotlist of people who are “liars by their own admission”.

“One of the regrettable features of this case is the number of people who it appears have told lies in the witness box or elsewhere,” Lord Justice Scott Baker told the jury.

“Some are liars by their own admission – I refer to James Andanson, Paul Burrell and John Macnamara.

“Others have either admitted telling half truths or part of their evidence may have shown in one respect or more that either in court or previously that they were not telling the truth.”

Lies may have been told because they were attention-seeking, feel they owe it to their boss or simply to try and improve their own situation.

Liars may have an axe to grind, it was suggested.

But while the jury must consider a liar’s motives, they can not take it for granted that everything that was said is untrue, according to the coroner.

Mr Burrell, 49, has refused to return to her inquest to answer allegations that he lied to the jury.

After giving evidence in January, Mr Burrell was filmed in New York claiming that, despite being under oath, he had not told the whole truth.

British newspapers published his remarks in full.

Lord Justice Scott Baker, the coroner, asked him to return and explain himself, but as Mr Burrell now lives mainly in Florida he is outside the jurisdiction of an English court and cannot be compelled to appear.

Mr Burrell alleged in the informally filmed interview that he had not told the full story of what he claimed was a three-hour discussion with the Queen about “dark forces” at work in Britain. He also said that he had laid “a couple of red herrings”.

Photographer Mr Andanson wrongly claimed to have taken the infamous pictures of the Duchess of York toe-sucking her financial advisor John Bryan.

John Macnamara, Mr Al Fayed’s head of security, admitted lying about what Diana’s driver had to drink the night she died.

In a TV interview, he said Henri Paul had drunk only “a pineapple juice” before the fatal crash.

But in the witness box the ex Metropolitan Police Chief Superintendent told the inquest he knew the Frenchman had drunk two shots of Ricard before the crash.

The Coroner told the jury: “You must first decide whether the person whose evidence you are considering has lied rather than having made an honest mistake.

“People tell lies because they think it is in the interest of their employer or to further their own interests or they want to be in the limelight.”

They may have an axe to grind against an individual or wish to “embellish”, he added.